The relationship between Michael Jackson and Tatum O’Neal in the late 1970s was a brief but poignant intersection of two of the world’s biggest child superstars. It was a romance born from a unique, shared understanding of immense fame, yet remembered through starkly different lenses, particularly concerning their most intimate moments.

The pair first met in 1975, when Jackson was 17 and O’Neal was 12. O’Neal was already an Oscar winner, the youngest in history, for her role in “Paper Moon.” Their romance, however, didn’t blossom until two years later, when they reconnected at a Los Angeles nightclub. Jackson recalled the moment O’Neal tenderly took his hand as “serious stuff to me,” a welcome departure from the grabbing hands of screaming fans.

Their bond was forged in the isolating crucible of child stardom. Jackson, deeply sheltered by his family and his Jehovah’s Witness faith, was described by O’Neal as “very sheltered and fearful and lonely.” In contrast, O’Neal, daughter of actor Ryan O’Neal, had a self-described “chaotic upbringing” and was already a fixture on the mature Hollywood scene. This confidence and freedom intrigued Jackson, who wistfully spoke of wanting to experience simple things like camping.

For Jackson, the feelings were profound. “I fell in love with her,” he stated. “I guess you’d have to say she was my first love after Diana [Ross].”

However, the romance came to an abrupt end in 1978. Jackson invited O’Neal to be his date for the premiere of his first film, The Wiz. O’Neal’s manager reportedly advised against it, and fearing a public, interracial relationship could harm her career, she turned him down without providing a clear reason. Jackson was deeply hurt, believing the rejection was racially motivated and that she had chosen her career over their connection. They stopped speaking for years.

Decades later, the nature of their physical relationship would become a point of public contention, with both offering vastly different recollections.

In a 2003 documentary, Jackson recounted a story in which he claimed O’Neal attempted to seduce him. He described being “scared to death” when she allegedly invited him to her house for “all the sexual stuff.” He claimed she led him to her bedroom, told him to lie on the bed, and tried to unbutton his shirt, but he was too shy and his religious values prevented anything from happening. “When I held Tatum’s hand, it was just magic,” he later told Rabbi Shmuley. “Better than anything.”

O’Neal vehemently disputed this version of events, calling Jackson’s account a “vivid imagination” and a “fantasy.” In her memoir, “A Paper Life,” she asserted that she was the one who was awkward and unready for a physical encounter. She described a single, brief kiss on her bed, after which she said, “I can’t,” and a profusely sweating Jackson “jumped up nervously and said, ‘Got to go.’” She stated that at the time of the supposed seduction, she was “barely pubescent.”

Despite the conflicting memories, O’Neal acknowledged Jackson’s intense but innocent curiosity about sex during their long phone conversations.

The two reconnected only once for a “final night of fun” in 1982, attending a Kool & the Gang concert while Michael was in an elaborate disguise of an afro and beard. Soon after, their lives diverged permanently as Jackson’s stardom exploded with Thriller and O’Neal married tennis star John McEnroe.

In later years, O’Neal reflected on her time with Jackson with a mix of fondness and the trauma associated with her Hollywood upbringing. While stating she never witnessed any inappropriate behavior from him, she stood by the alleged victims in the Leaving Neverland documentary, citing her own painful experiences within the industry and her own family.

Ultimately, the brief romance between Michael Jackson and Tatum O’Neal stands as a complex chapter in both their lives—a bond defined by the shared pressures of child superstardom, which was perhaps more meaningful than any physical intimacy they may or may not have shared.